MotoGP 2025
Sepang Test – Day One – Aprilia
By the end of the first day of MotoGP testing at Sepang on Wednesday, three riders (Martin, Fernandez and DiGiannantonio), were already heading for surgery and ruled out of the remainder of the test.
The most dramatic incident of the day involved World Champion Jorge Martin, whose high-speed crash at turn two generated the biggest headlines. Martin suffered a brutal off-throttle high-side, resulting in a violent impact that stunned onlookers. He was initially assessed at the circuit’s medical centerre before being transferred to Aurelius Hospital in Nilai for further examinations.
Doctors diagnosed the 27-year-old Spaniard with a closed fracture of the 5th metacarpal bone in his right hand, as well as fractures to the 3rd, 4th, and 5th metatarsal bones in his left foot. Fortunately, a CT scan and MRI ruled out any head injuries.
Martin will remained in the Malaysian hospital overnight and is scheduled to fly back to Europe today (Thursday) to undergo surgery on both his right hand and left foot. It is highly likely that he will miss the two-day test in Thailand next week and remains doubtful for the season opener at Chang International Circuit, scheduled for the weekend of March 2.
In the meantime, Lorenzo Savadori will step in to replace Martin and continue development work on the RS-GP25. However, this is a significant setback for Aprilia’s title aspirations. With crucial development still needed to finalise the engine and other components—before they are sealed for the entire season—losing input from their star recruit is a major blow. Unfortunately for Aprilia, the setbacks didn’t stop there.
Trackhouse Aprilia’s Raul Fernandez completed just 24 laps in the morning session before suffering a heavy crash at turn nine. The impact left him with a fractured metacarpal bone in his left hand and a fractured little toe on his left foot. As a result, Fernandez left the circuit early and returned to Barcelona for further medical evaluation. This marks the second consecutive year that a pre-season crash has disrupted his preparations.
This time, however, the consequences for Aprilia are even more significant. With a full season of experience on the 2024 iteration of the RS-GP, Fernandez was the only full-time rider capable of providing crucial comparative feedback on the 2025 prototype. His absence complicates the development process at a critical juncture. Once the 2025 engine specification is finalised, Aprilia will be required to use it not only for this season but also throughout 2026, due to an engine freeze ahead of the transition to 850 cc engines in 2027.
Raul Fernandez
“First of all, thanks to the team and thanks to all the brands that support me with gear because today I had a big crash during the first day of testing here in Sepang. This is certainly not what we wanted, especially first day back on the bike. What happened was quite strange because we started quite well with our minds focused on work. I had a strange crash, I did more or less the same things like in the laps before so I didn’t expect anything like this to happen. It was very unusual and I was unlucky because I broke a bone in my left hand and one in my left foot. I will fly back to Spain now to undergo further examinations to find out what exactly I have and what will be the best treatment to get back on the bike as quick as possible.”
With Martin and Fernandez unable to give their feedback the workload for Marco Bezzecchi will increase substantially. The Italian completed 68 laps with a best of 1m59.207 which ranked his 18th on the timing sheets.
Marco Bezzecchi
“It was a positive day. We tried the first evolution of the RS-GP25, the one from Barcelona, and then we switched to the latest specification, which I liked much more. We still have a lot of items to test, so it’s too early to give detailed feedback. The bike gives me good sensations, especially at the front, which allows me to ride naturally. I have fun riding, and I immediately felt comfortable. Everyone in the box is very enthusiastic and there’s a great atmosphere.”
The only other rider on track for Aprilia was MotoGP rookie Ai Ogura who spent the day getting his head around the Michelin tyres and the RS-GP. The 2024 Moto2 World Champion also had a fall in the morning session. On the upside Ogura has been doing well in his transition to the big-bore category, impressing at the Shakedown Test last week, and also not far off the pace against the big boys on Wednesday.
Ai Ogura
“Most of the time today we have been working with a medium rear and during the Shakedown I had the soft, so things have been a bit different compared to the first three days of testing here. I think it was a bit cooler today, so this made it easier, but other than that the conditions felt very similar to the Shakedown test. Later in the day I went out again with a soft rear and I just continued my work from the last test from there on. It was the way we worked before and it was good.”
Massimo Rivola – Aprilia Racing
“During the launch, we said that the first phase would be about learning, but clearly with what has happened today that phase has been significantly delayed. All we can do now is wish Jorge the best of luck and work to the best of our ability, just as we did with Marco, who appreciated the various changes along the way and still leaves us with a positive outlook. I’m sure Jorge will come back stronger than ever and we’ll be there with him. A thought also for Raúl, who suffered a serious injury at the start of the test.”
Davide Brivio – Trackhouse Team Principal
“This has been a difficult day for us due to Raul’s injury. It was very unfortunate after just a few laps he had a crash and this time he suffered a fracture on his left hand, so he’s going back to Barcelona. He will try to get further examinations and the best treatment possible. Then we can evaluate what his recovery time will look like and see when we will have him back with us. For Ai, it was another solid day despite a small crash in the morning. He continued his learning and we worked with used tires, electronics settings and various things that we are trying to help him discover, learn and understand. So far, so good, let’s keep going. We hope we can continue smoothly like this on this side of the garage.”
2025 MotoGP Sepang Test Times
Day One
- Quartararo Fabio FRA Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1’57.55
- Marquez Marc SPA Ducati Lenovo Team +0.051
- Marquez Alex SPA Team Gresini Racing MotoGP Ducati +0.183
- Aldegeur Fermin SPA Team Gresini Racing MotoGP Ducati +0.480
- Morbidelli Franco ITA Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Ducati +0.559
- Mir Joan SPA Honda HRC Castrol +0.560
- Di Giannantonio Fabio ITA Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Ducati +0.710
- Miller Jack AUS Prima Pramac Yamaha +0.743
- Zarco Johann FRA LCR Honda +0.777
- Oliveira Miguel POR Prima Pramac Yamaha +0.816
- Acosta Pedro SPA Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.841
- Binder Brad RSA Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.952
- Vinales Maverick SPA Red Bull KTM Tech 3 +0.997
- Rins Alex SPA Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP +1.097
- Marini Luca ITA Honda HRC Castrol +1.149
- Ogura Ai JPN Trackhouse Racing Aprilia +1.208
- Bagnaia Francesco ITA Ducati Lenovo Team +1.392
- Bezzecchi Marco ITA Aprilia Racing +1.652
- Bastianini Enea ITA Red Bull KTM Tech 3 +2.042
- Fernandez Augusto SPA Yamaha Test Team +2.121
- Chantra Somkiat THA LCR Honda +2.744
- Fernandez Raul SPA Trackhouse Racing Aprilia +3.733
- Martin Jorge SPA Aprilia Racing +3.766